TAKEAWAYS 
Follow UsThe Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the squad for India’s multi-format tour of South Africa, starting December 10. It is a compact tour consisting of three T20Is, three ODIs and two Tests (in chronological order) and the selectors have announced all three squads simultaneously.
As posted by the BCCI on X, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli asked for a break from the white-ball leg of the tour. Shubman Gill, Ravindra Jadeja and Prasidh Krishna are not selected for the ODIs as the Indian players will play an intra-squad match to prepare for the Test series.
India will have different captains in the three formats. Suryakumar Yadav will continue to captain the T20I side. KL Rahul has been announced skipper for the ODI series and Rohit Sharma will return to lead the Test team. Jasprit Bumrah returns after missing nine Tests in a row. Mohammed Shami's participation in the Test series is subject to fitness.
In this piece, we shed light on the three squads announced on Thursday (November 30). Considering no press conference was held by the BCCI, we might be a little more of a help.
A big tour for KL Rahul
This South Africa tour is a chance for KL Rahul to right a few wrongs and press his foot for greater things. On the back of his fine glovework in ODI cricket of late, the Karnataka-born is back in the Test side, and for the first time, he will be the designated wicketkeeper in the longest format.
India have tried KS Bharat and Ishan Kishan as wicketkeepers but none of them could match the batting value of Rishabh Pant. While Kishan got only two Tests against a modest West Indies’ attack, the selectors have made the switch to Rahul’s batting potential as a wicketkeeping batter. Rahul was dropped after the Delhi Test against Australia, losing his position as an opener to Shubman Gill.
In another added responsibility, Rahul has been appointed the captain of the ODI squad. India will soon be searching for Rohit's successor as the full-time ODI captain. Thus, Rahul has an opportunity to press his claim for the same as the senior-most batter in Rohit and Kohli’s absence. Also, with plenty of middle-order options available in the squad, the 31-year old may get back to open the innings.
It is a strange coincidence: Rahul, the Test opener will be batting in the middle-order while Rahul the middle-order ODI batter can be seen opening the innings.
Having said that, Rahul has not been picked for the T20I series, and that's perhaps an indication that he may not be in plans for the T20 World Cup. India’s semi-final defeat against England in the 2022 T20 World Cup was Rahul’s last appearance in the format.
Chahar returns to white-ball cricket
Although he has been added to the squad for the remaining two T20Is against Australia, Deepak Chahar’s inclusion in both ODI and T20I squads to tour South Africa is both baffling and understandable.
On the rationale side of the decision, Chahar is the perfect fit for the seam-bowling all-rounder’s role as Hardik Pandya is injured. All of India’s other all-round options are spinners. When India last toured South Africa (in 2021/22), Chahar’s 54 in the third ODI kept India in the game which seemed lost before his arrival at the crease at number seven. Thus, Chahar is critical to India’s attempt at creating batting depth while maintaining the bare minimum of five bowling options.
However, as someone who's time and again proven to be fragile physically, it remains to be seen if Chahar is in long-term plans of the selectors or just a stop-gap option for a SENA tour. A lot of it will be cleared with how he holds up in the remaining T20Is against Australia.
Too many spinners?
The Men in Blue will be taking four spinners each for the three ODIs and three T20Is, which seems a tad too many for white-ball fixtures in South Africa. In ODIs since 2022, South African venues have the worst economy rate for any country (5.9 runs/over). Indian spinners picked only three wickets in the three ODIs when they last toured South Africa in 2022.
In a strange call, Yuzvendra Chahal is back for the ODIs after missing the World Cup. Ravi Bishnoi has been picked only for the T20Is. Washington Sundar has been picked in both squads but it won’t be easy for him to break into the XI given only one spin-bowling all-rounder will merit a spot in the combination; Axar Patel in ODIs and Ravindra Jadeja in T20Is. Jadeja has also been appointed the vice-captain of the T20I side.
Jadeja and Axar’s situation also suggests that the former is ahead in terms of preference for the T20 World Cup.
Who will open in T20Is?
Yet again a problem of plenty for India at the top of the order. Shubman Gill is set to return in the T20Is with an assured spot as one of the two openers. That leaves India with a choice to make among the three openers: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan and Ruturaj Gaikwad.
Kishan will be the preferred choice as a wicketkeeper. Gaikwad has recently scored a hundred in the third T20I against Australia and Jaiswal offers impactful runs in his package. If Kishan bats at three then both Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav will have to bat a spot below their usual position. Therefore, it is a tough decision to pick one between Kishan, Jaiswal and Gaikwad.
We will get a hint of how India tackle this ‘happy headache’ in the fourth and fifth T20I against Australia where Shreyas Iyer returns to the squad. If India are ready to bat Kishan at five, then there is another choice to make between Tilak Varma and Rinku Singh.
Rahane axed; Sudharshan, Samson picked & other new joinees
It would have been an easy decision to continue with Ajinkya Rahane in the name of experience. He featured as vice-captain in India’s previous Test series but scored only 11 runs in two innings. Dropped after the previous Test series against South Africa in 2021/22, Rahane returned for the World Test Championship final at the expense of Iyer’s injury. Now, the selectors have handed Iyer his spot back for the subsequent tour to South Africa. Life has come full circle for Rahane in this regard. Seemingly, the door has shut for him and Cheteshwar Pujara.
Meanwhile, Prasidh Krishna looks fit for his Test debut. If Mohammed Shami doesn’t regain full fitness in time, Prasidh can sneak in as the third seamer.
The ODI setup carries a fresh look. Sanju Samson is back, earning an ODI call-up with a T20 World Cup coming soon. Rajat Patidar, Rinku Singh and Sai Sudharsan stand a chance to make their ODI debut. With Kohli, Rohit and Pandya unavailable, the three ODIs present the best opportunity for this lot to put their name in the ring to be their future successors.
